Legal Question in Family Law in Florida

Need Some Advice

Ok, I have two children, ages 9 and 7, My Ex and I have joint custody, they live with her during the school year and then stay with my wife and I during the summer. The reason they do not live with me through the school year is because I am in the Military and with the moving every three years or so, made it to where she got them. But in the last three years she has moved to, (started in Fl.) KY, then back to Fl. and now has moved them to TX. Sometime before she moved from Fl. to Tx. my then 8 year old daughter ran away from home and was picked up by strangers, who in turned called the police, of course we never found out about this until our summer visit, and my daughter told us. They are both scared of their stepfather, My wife and I have heard some bad things about what he does to them. We live in Ca and of course they are in Tx. now, we are going to talk to a counsler in the morning. Is there some way to find out what was done in the police report? We believe they left Fl. to get away from CPA. What should we do? Thank You for anything you can tell us.


Asked on 7/31/03, 3:02 am

4 Answers from Attorneys

Patrick McNeal Law Offices of Patrick D. McNeal

Re: Need Some Advice

There is a lot that you can do:

1) You have a right to the information from the Child Protective Services if any information exists, contact them directly and they should be accomodating,,

2) The same is true about the police reports relating to your daughter's run-away incident,again the Police Agency should be able to assist you.

3) If the home life with your ex-wife and their step-father is unstable or otherwise unsuitable, you can petition for custody. Either in the state where the original divorce occurred , or in California, where the children spend their summers,,,,,,,,,,,contact a family law attorney for help and advise on these issues,,,,,,,pdm

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Answered on 7/31/03, 9:35 am
PATRICK MCCRARY PATRICK MCCRARY

Re: Need Some Advice

I disagree that California would have jurisdiction, unless you can establish there is a danger to the children and the court can take temporary emergency jurisdiction. Do your investigation in both Florida and Texas to find what the status of any child protective investigations. You will need to file your motion in Texas, so should contact an attorney in Texas ASAP. Good Luck, Pat McCrary

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Answered on 7/31/03, 11:03 am
Dieter Zacher Law Offices of Dieter Zacher

Re: Need Some Advice

You should hire an investigator to answer these questions. Then, go to court and try to get custody. Thanks for inquiring.

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Answered on 7/31/03, 4:36 pm
E. Daniel Bors Jr. Attorney & Counselor At Law

Re: Need Some Advice

Dear Inquirer:

Nothing herein shall create an attorney-client relationship, unless a written retainer agreement is executed by the attorney and client. This communication contains general information only. Nothing herein shall constitute an attorney-client communication nor legal advice. There likely are deadlines and time-limits associated with your case; you should contact an attorney of your choice for legal advice specific to your personal situation, at once.

If you haven't already done so, please visit my

web site at --

http://www.CaliforniaDivorceAttorney.com

The site contains quite a bit of general information about California Family Law, Tenants' Rights, and Juvenile Dependencies, as well as information about me (education, experience, et cetera) and my office (location, hours, fees, policies).

NOW, IN RESPONSE TO YOUR INQUIRY --

Check with Child Protective Services, the Police, and the District Attorney, everywhere the children have lived. Barring an outright emergency, and assuming that the kids have been in Texas at least six months (making it their "home state"), you will need a lawyer to represent you and file in Texas. Otherwise, jurisdiction is probably "up for grabs" and whoever files first (Texas or CA) will -- as a practical metter -- take control.

Thanks for sharing your interesting inquiry with us on LawGuru, and good luck with your case.

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Answered on 8/01/03, 9:30 pm


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